For those who don't know the Razer Orochi [razerzone.com], here is the very short review:The good:- Very well built, good components- Lots of buttons, cool features and configuration options- USB / Bluetooth hybrid- Very comfortable

The bad:- Bluetooth power saving is too fast (after 20 or so seconds there is a momentary but noticeable lag to start moving again, didn't notice this problem in microsoft bluetooth mice)- Even with this agressive power saving the battery life is very bad (as in comically bad)

Regarding the first problem, the only way to fix this is probably changing the bluetooth module firmware (beyond my current capabilities) and after a while you kind of stop noticing it.

Regarding the battery life problem, like most people, I was using AA rechargeable batteries and the whole "take batteries out, recharge them, put them in again" is kind of inconvenient. The solution? A rechargeable lithium cell, of course!

Items needed:- 14500 lithium (14 x 50mm, very close to a AA battery)- Lithium charge controller- A couple of hours

How I did it:First I bought a test 14500 cell on ebay, 2USD with shipping to Portugal included! Here it is, next to a AA for size comparison:

Now the charge controller, I had a couple of AnalogicTech AAT3681 charging ICs so I made the eagle part library and etched a very simple PCB based on the datasheet:

Those 3 diodes are there as a very simple way to lower the voltage from 4.2V of the maximum Li cell to around 3.3V, closer to two new AAs (not the best way but very quick and cheap )

Now I just wired everything:- The USB and battery ground are the same, this makes things easier as it will also be the charger ground.- +5v from USB to charger input- Charging current set to around 80mA (the charging IC is really small, I didn't felt very confident with higher charging currents)- The 3 diodes are in series between the Litium cell and the previous battery in- The status pin of the charger is wired to a orange LED that I've placed near the mouse status LEDs

Closing time, battery in one side and controller board in the other:

And voilá! When I connect the mouse via USB, if the battery voltage is under the threshold, the charge starts:

With this cheap battery (2USD, shipping included!) I'm pretty sure it will not be very good, it has 1200mAh printed on the side but it's most likely fake. As long as it has more battery life than my laptop does I'll probably stick with it, but as soon as I have the battery life data I will share it.

As a side note, having one lithium cell instead of two AAs makes a very noticeable difference in the mouse weight, it's a lot more comfortable to use!

With my daily usage the battery lasts more than a week, as it can be recharged overnight I think this is enough.

I also measured the current used by the mouse:35mA while moving the mouse or pressing a button1,5mA in sleep mode (the 6 second interval between the last movement and the deep sleep mode)0,5mA in deep sleep mode

The charge controller only starts charging again if the battery voltage drops below 4,1V.

I am now working on a way to stop the mouse from going into deep sleep mode (to prevent it from lagging), it should be ready next week

Very cool work there zenith1111. Sounds like you're doing pretty good actually, a week's worth of use doesn't sound that bad.

I had to recently switch to an old Logitech MX1000. Approximately 3 days of battery after being fully charged, and it weighs about 50% more than my last corded MX400. I keep forgetting to throw it on the charger too...

Thank you very much for this mod. I have been studying this mod for quite some time and adopted this mod to something more into new in technology for the Razer

instead of etching out a circuit board I found one that works with Lithium Polymer and lithium Ion and very small like the size of a dime. i had bought for Christmas 2 helo tc helocopters and now both broken I used the lithium Polymer batteries and the chargers. the charger is cheep like $3.99 directly. I bought a new 2013 Razer because I thought i broke the 2012 one and was upset because its pretty in blue and chrome black and not really liking the green, not my color so I thought what the hack lets give it a Try.

the fact is that I liked how you found out that the ground is the same as the negative terminal on the mouse and with this charger i found works and already has a built in 1mm LED and stops charging once the 4.16v threshold is reached. I have noticed that when charging I am still able to use the mouse, however i dont think the charging ever shuts off like its supposed to and the Red charging light mixed with the Blue = Fuschia color stays lit and charged if pluged into the computer.

tested the heat and I have tested the voltage and monitored it for a good hour after the charge and does not go over the 4.16-4.17v and it is not over heating. however when plugged into the wall with a 5v 1.2a cellphone charger the light shuts off and done charging in 45-60min.

Polymer batteris are known to explode if over heated or over charged we do not want your hand to go POOF, and the screams I got burned when you get Fragged durning a game and your mouse turn into Liquid plastic Glop from a total melt down from the polymer batteries =)

so thats why im testing this out on the 2012 version of the Razer Orochi with a cracked circuit board near palm right the broadcom bluetooth card, praying it didnt hurt any multi ply perf board wiring and I am missing that magnificent magnet with copper enamel wire that has "101" on top at the top right of the mouse. ("I have no clue how important this piece of circuity is to the mouse however without it, it still works") the new 2013 razer doesn't have this mini electromagnet coil anywhere on the board. and the 2013 circuity has cleaned up, no longer used broadcom bluetooth and pleanty of space to mount this mini charger onboard, I think they finally patent their own bluetooth board.

the Orochi 2013 powered two AA batteries, and optimized for extended life. Achieve up to 30 hours of continuous gameplay, or 3 months of normal usage, twice of it’s predecessor.

Orochi 2012 I had to swap out the AA alkaline about every month on the dot for 40hour work week in the IT help desk position where we use a mouse greatly for that 8hour shift. and maybe pushed 1.5months on 6-7$ energizer Lithium that says 6x 7X or 8x longer but didnt make a difference. I bought for a package of 4 NIMH 1.2v + charger for 22$ but still a pain if you forget the charger or worse not charged and need battery's ASAP for another 5-7$ down the tubes for alkaline. and after you use this mouse it makes standard mice of cheep quality like Roman noodles to Maine Lobster.

So why wouldn't you want to do this mod for under 20$ or even cheaper just basic soldering skills and I chose area's where you cant mess up or make a mess.

Your Teeth = Free (I have been doing this since I was 8 years old never had a problem and takes skills =) or wire cutters optional Total = $11.33

since Lithium Polymer is strong powerful and light weight this cuts I think 40% of the actual weight with 2AA batteries , actually with polymer batteries weighs as if there were no Batteries in it at all or maybe 8-9grams heavier. but super light weight compared to 2 AA batteries in this mouse.

The batteries i used are 2 180mAh 3.7volt = 360mAh set up and soldered in Parallel (NOT SERIES) soldered together that came out of the Helo TC mini toy helicopters

I am testing the battery life right now based on one full charge cycle and will post more then I can accurately purchase a better lithium polymer Battery cell at a higher mAh or wH to easily mold into the mouse. in fact if I find 2 more I will hook them up in Parallel adding on 8grams and 720MAH charge time aprox 2-3 hours but the higher the mAh the longer the discharge equals the longer life the mouse will have between charges. the great thing is with Lithium Polymer is there is no half life or memory and I believe you can charge about 500 times before that batter reaches a 3v and no longer able to charge

======UPDATE 2/27/2013 @0130am est=====================after 24hours of normal use voltage is at 3.67v and i use the mouse a lot except to when i am sleeping 14-16hours aprox of use

======UPDATE 2/27/2013 @0230am est=====================mouse battery just died symptoms: I started hearing a high pitch 10db noise emitting from the mouse earlier, I was starting to think i was going crazy until i put the mouse to my ears or if that is what that mini electromagnetic coil is for to damping or suppress this white noise when ever the laser or scroll wheel is active, however the mouse started to become odd in behavior as it reached 3.61v as in i was battling the mouse courser to go up when it just wanted to sloop down as if the mouse were on a incline moving down, lights still emitting power this behavior let me to turn the mouse off and restart. upon powering back on the mouse is totally unresponsive no lights not active.

Conclusion:it appears that the battery lost its 3.7volts stable power to a complete peak drop off...just as these batteries are supposed to do. Lithium polymer batteries do not have a drastic decline like in alkaline, nmh, or ions. more of a stable decline and then drop off below 3.7v

so if every day I charge this mouse the batter would fully die in a Year and 19weeksso bottom line is for a 20 dollar investment 2.26 cents a day .16 cents a week aprox 63 cents a month $11.33 for a year and 19 weeks I am spending on batteries for my mouse till the next best mouse comes out as opposed to 117.25 dollars for the same time with alkaline.

and 14-16hours of use is not bad at all

Improvements to test out:more mAh!!! if 360mAh lasted aprox 24hours in 14-16h of use then 1440mAh would last about 5 days before a cycle charge of 4-6hoursalso I am learning about a C rating = # times the capacity of the battery

Typical Cycle Graph

CC/CV Charge at 4.2V,1C, +25ºC. CC Discharge at 1C to 3.0V, +25ºC.

As of the beginning of 2013, charging rates of up to 15C or approximately 4-minute charge times are possible in the relatively new (circa 2009) breed of nanowire technology LiPo batteries. This, however, is the exception to the rule, as the more common 1C charge rate still stands as the recommended standard among RC users. It is also important to note that regardless of the charge rate that a battery can handle, using the lower 1C charge rate will always increase the longevity of any RC LiPo battery.[edit]Discharging

Also as of the beginning of 2013, discharge rates of up to 65C continuous (i.e.: 65 times the capacity of the battery) and 130C burst are possible (see "Radio controlled equipment" section above). Both of these "C-ratings" are expected to increase as the nanowire battery technology (presumably used in these batteries) continues to mature, and manufacturers and users alike continue to refine their processes and push the limits of this high-performance breed of LiPo battery.

found this because I'm looking to mod my logitech g700 (takes a single 1.2v NiMH) and wondering if something similar would work... I'm no electrical engineer, but not scared of some tinkering... would love some insight if anyone has any... will keep poking around to see if I can find anything more specific...